I'm Not Fine At All 》Michael Clifford

Chapter Three

Riley's POV:

The tiny bit of sunlight which came through my window curtains managed to finally make it to my face. The warmth and light woke me, and I opened my eyes. The clock on my dresser read eleven forty-five in the morning, but it didn't matter; it was Saturday. No work. Just grocery shopping.

I dragged myself out of bed and into the shower, where I cleaned up. Then I threw on some jeans and a Green Day sweater, along with a beanie and my coat. I grabbed my bag and phone, took my keys off of my desk, and went to the kitchen. Dad was nowhere to be seen. His bedroom door was open, which meant he wasn't in there, and I had just come out of the bathroom. He was gone yet again.

I shook it off and left the apartment, locking the door behind me. I was fine. I was on my own almost every hour of every day.

I began the short walk to the nearest supermarket, and plugged in my ear phones. Green Day's American Idiot began playing, and I left it as that. I almost always had some sort of music playing, unless I was at work. I was obsessed. I could literally fall asleep to Green Day, or Nirvana. It was strange.

After finishing at the supermarket, I dropped the groceries off at the apartment, and decided to take a trip to the mall. I needed some new clothes anyway, I was getting to the point of wearing the same thing every other day. That was not acceptable to me.

I entered the building and began walking to the nearest department stoor, when I froze in my tracks. Just a few yards away, was a massive crowd of teenage girls, all with their phones out taking pictures of something... or someone. I was about to turn around and leave, when I heard a familiar Australian voice calling my name. My head snapped up in the direction of the voice. Michael stood amongst the girls, with numerous security guards around him. The other boys were a ways away, talking to the crowd, signing things, and taking pictures.

The bright red hair stuck out from under the same hat as the night before, but he had on a Green Day t-shirt this time... the same as mine. The teenage girls were going insane, trying to snap a picture or get him to notice them.

"Riley?" He called my name again and I snapped out of my little daze, as many pairs of eyes snapped to me. Then the whispering began, girls pointing at me, questioning who I was. Michael was right in front of me, just on the other side of a security guard. "It is Riley, isn't it?" I nodded, which earned a big smile from him, pleased with himself for remembering. "Big crowd, huh?" I nodded, looking around. The crowd was at least three times bigger than the one the night before. "So, Riley, I was actually wondering if you might want to go... have a coffee... or something?" Many gasps from the crowd of girls who were close enough to hear, and I was sure my face turned the same shade as Michael's hair.

"I... um... I-I don't know, I..." I was stuttering. No one had ever asked me to coffee. "What about them?"

"The fans? Oh, they won't bother us. Neither will the boys, they just want to get back to the hotel so that they can eat." He replied. I sighed and looked at the ground.

"Coffee would be great."

>>>>>>

We left the mall and headed down the street to a nearby Starbucks. I didn't know why I felt so uneasy about it all. We ordered our coffees and sat down in the coffee shop, and I looked around to see a security guard in every corner of the shop, staring at us. The crowd of girls stayed outside the glass doors, some even considerate enough to leave us alone, and continue on with their business. I stared at one of the large guards who stood in the corner opposite me.

"They here for protection, you know," Michael's calm voice brought my attention off of the guard, and onto his green eyes which were watching my every move.